Assad’s public plea offers no hope of resolution

Syria’s opposition and its international backers have rejected President Bashar al-Assad’s latest initiative to end the 21 months of violence, insisting that he offered no meaningful concessions and should surrender power at once.

Hopes of a breakthrough were dashed after an hour-long speech in Damascus in which Mr Assad called for “a war to defend the nation" against “terrorist" violence and urged foreign countries to stop supporting his enemies – while offering a national dialogue and a constitutional referendum.

He proposed what he called a “comprehensive plan" that included an “expanded government". But there was no sign that he was prepared to step down as the first stage of a political transition – a demand of all opposition groups. “I will go one day, but the country remains," he said.

The opposition Syrian National Coalition said the address marked an end to diplomatic efforts led by United Nations mediator Lakhdar Brahimi. “The appropriate response is to continue to resist this unacceptable regime and for the Free Syrian Army to continue its work in liberating Syria until every inch of land is free," said George Sabra, its deputy president.

In Washington, the US State Department described the road map as “detached from reality" and reiterated its call for Mr Assad to resign. The European Union also called on him to step aside.

Mr Assad’s speech was “beyond hypocritical", British Foreign Secretary
William Hague
commented on Twitter. “Deaths, violence and oppression engulfing Syria are his own making. Empty promises of reform fool no one."

Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi told CNN he backed calls for Mr Assad to be tried for war crimes.

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Mr Assad referred repeatedly to “plots" against his country and the role of al-Qaeda, long portrayed as the leading element in what began as a popular uprising in March 2011.

Syria was not facing a revolution but a “gang of criminals" and “Western puppets", he said.

“We are now in a state of war in every sense of the word," Mr Assad told cheering supporters. “This war targets Syria using a handful of Syrians and many foreigners. Thus, this is a war to defend the nation."

The speech from the Damascus Opera House was punctuated by thunderous applause and loyalist chants from what was certainly a carefully selected audience. The city was described as being under a security lockdown before the event. Internet services were disconnected.

But it was hard to see how Mr Assad’s public speech offered even a faint glimmer of a way out of the bloody impasse.